School drug testing

Students at the Delaware Valley School District in Pennsylvania have won an appeal of a case in which they sued the school district, claiming that its drug testing policy violated their privacy rights. The plan requires that all middle and high school students who want to play sports, participate in extracurricular activities, or park an automobile on school premises submit to an alcohol and drug test. The Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, affirming a lower court's ruling, found that the school must prove that the need for drug testing outweighs the privacy rights of students. In this case, the school did not provide evidence that the drug testing was needed. (Theodore v. Delaware Valley School District, Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, No. J-97-2004, 2004)

While 71 percent of New Jersey companies are "very concerned" about drug or alcohol abuse among their employees, only 30 percent have implemented substance abuse education, training, or assistance programs for employees. Companies whose staff have serious alcohol or drug abuse problems are no more likely to have such programs than those without these problems. @ See SM Online for a survey on drug abuse policies in New Jersey workplaces.